In a semiconductor manufacturing process, a plasma processing apparatus that performs a plasma process of etching or depositing a thin film has been widely used. Examples of the plasma processing apparatus may include a plasma CVD (Chemical Vapor Deposition) apparatus that performs a deposition process of a thin film or a plasma etching apparatus that performs an etching process.
The plasma processing apparatus includes, for example, a processing vessel that partitions a plasma processing space; a sample table that mounts a target substrate thereon within the processing vessel; and a gas supply system that supplies a processing gas for plasma reaction into the processing vessel. Further, the plasma processing apparatus also includes a plasma generation device that supplies electromagnetic energy such as a microwave, a RF wave, etc. to excite the processing gas within the processing vessel into plasma; and a bias voltage application device that applies a bias voltage to the sample table to accelerate ions in the plasma toward the target substrate mounted on the sample table.
Meanwhile, it has been known that in a plasma processing apparatus, when forming contact holes for field effect transistor (FET), a target substrate, in which a silicon oxide film or a silicon nitride film is formed on a surface of a silicide film, is etched. In this regard, for example, Patent Document 1 describes that a target substrate, in which a silicon oxide film or a silicon nitride film is formed on a surface of a nickel silicide film, is arranged in a plasma processing space, and the target substrate is etched toward the nickel silicide film serving as a base.
Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Laid-open Publication No. 2010-080798